Even as inclusion in QE remains in doubt, Greek bonds have outperformed all European sovereigns this year, as the prospect of a deal with creditors on the disbursement of more aid has reduced the risk of default.

But Berlin should insist that this is done in a way that maintains sound incentives, improves market discipline and increases the credibility of the no-bailout rule for sovereigns and the bail-in framework for banks.

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'sovereign.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Origin and Etymology of sovereign

Middle English soverain, from Anglo-French soverein, from soverein, adjective — see 2sovereign

sovereignly

Examples of sovereign in a Sentence

Local officials and a huge and enthusiastic crowd greeted Napoleon at the Portoferraio harbor. The Allies had granted him the title of Emperor of Elba, which was to be a sovereign state under his jurisdiction. —David Pryce-Jones, National Review, 4 July 2005

If Cleopatra VII used her own personality more like Elizabeth I than Elizabeth II, she seems to have had the latter Elizabeth's sovereign sense of duty—as well as her fertility: With a dispatch usually associated with the gods, Cleopatra bore Caesar a son called Caesarion—"little Caesar"—in 47 B.C.E., the year after they met (she was twenty-one, he fifty-two). —Ingrid D. Rowland, New Republic, 1 & 8 April 2002

the sovereign power of a king

The government's sovereign duty is to protect the rights of its citizens.

Recent Examples of sovereign from the Web

Even among those who felt pride and joy upon hearing a new republic declared, there was a deeper sense that Catalonia was not really a sovereign state; far from it.

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'sovereign.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Sovereign Power

Sovereign has everything to do with power. It often describes a person who has supreme power or authority, such as a king or queen. God is described as "sovereign" in a number of Bible translations. In addition to describing ones who have power, the word sovereign also often describes power: to have sovereign power is to have absolute power—that is, power that cannot be checked by anyone or anything. Nations and states are also sometimes described as "sovereign." This means that they have power over themselves; their government is under their own control, rather than under the control of an outside authority.

Sovereign can also be a synonym of supreme as in "of the most exalted kind." In that case, the power is figurative rather than literal.

Origin and Etymology of sovereign

Middle English soverain, from Anglo-French soverein, from Vulgar Latin *superanus, from Latin super over, above — more at over